It took you years to make your restaurant dream a reality, but you finally got the doors open. You couldn’t be happier with how your grand opening is going – until you getless-than-flattering review from the biggest restaurant critic in town. Your reaction has the potential to make a bigger impact than the review itself, so your next moves are critical.

Don’t expect advance notice.

You may know it’s coming – but no one except the critic will know what it’s going to say ahead of time. Jennifer Resik Williams says, “We don’t have any heads up in terms of a tone or a rating of a review before it’s published. I tend not to do any expectation setting with our clients when it comes to reviews because they are so out of our hands and individual.”

Stay calm.

Take a deep breath. “Don’t get stressed about it, because being stressed is not an action step. It’s a waste of time,” counsels Meaghan O’Shea.

Avoid Twitter.

Disconnect from the internets. “Stay away from social media all together because you can’t take back whatever you say,” advises Jennie Kuperstein. “Just put your phone away.”

Engage privately.

Consider reaching out to the source. Williams reveals, “Many critics are open to a phone discussion or a short back and forth by email. There is something to be gained from all types of feedback.”

Hold steady.

You don’t necessarily need to reinvent the wheel. Kuperstein cautions, “One review is not a reason to redo your whole concept or menu. Stay true to who you are.” [Read more…]

The restaurant industry is one of the most competitive out there — not least of which when it comes to hiring a great staff. But when there are so many large hospitality groups in the mix, all offering aggressive salaries and a laundry list of benefits, it can be hard for smaller restaurants to stand out as employers. So why not take a cue from start-up culture, and get creative with your benefits? Here are some ideas for how to market your independent restaurant to potential employees and earning and keeping an excellent team, even when you don’t have the resources of a hospitality behemoth.

Arrange for employee discounts at local businesses.

Have friendly boutiques, salons, or grocery stores in the area? Ask for exclusive discounts for your employees. It’s a win-win, as it brings a new audience for these shops and a freebie for your team. Try out a service like AnyPerk, which helps connect your employees to great deals.

Offer a generous parental leave policy.

One of the most no-brainer ways of earning goodwill as a company is to provide the kind of parental leave that doesn’t force new moms and dads to go back to work just a week or two after having a kid. If you’re generous with parental leave in the short term, then in the long run, you’re helping to guarantee that when your employees come back to work, they’ll be productive and recharged; they’ll also be more likely to stay with you for longer.

Host classes and other learning opportunities.

Wine and beer tastings with local providers; pottery demonstrations; harvesting at a local farm — these are all great examples of fun social gatherings that will also make your employees perform better and more informed about the hospitality business.

Serve coffee.

This is a small touch that makes a big difference. Most employees are likely grabbing a coffee before their shift — make it easy for them by making a big pot of coffee every morning and afternoon, and putting it out in a large dispenser with cups.

Enact summer Fridays.

During the summer months, when times are slower, offer employees one or two extra days off (Fridays or otherwise) of their choice. They’ll appreciate the gesture during the less-busy period. [Read more…]

Private events are a great way for restaurants to add additional revenue while creating memorable experiences for diners. During the summer months, private event bookings tend to slow down — meaning that managers and operators should seize the opportunity to revamp their marketing efforts and attract new private party guests.

If you’re planning on marketing your space closer to the holiday season that may be too late. “It may seem early, but people start thinking about their holiday spending and planning private events around May or June,” says Marc Liu, co-founder and digital marketing expert at Gourmet Marketing, a NYC-based firm specializing in hospitality marketing. The summer may seem like it’s too early to start marketing private event spaces but it might be the perfect time, he says. “Bigger corporate events and weddings are being planned right now, so you want to make sure that you’re marketing your space to get these events.”

The space is a key factor, but capturing private event sales is about more than that. “It’s important for owners to remember that you’re not promoting your space — you’re promoting the potential for an event.” Guests have to be able to see themselves in your space and that will make them want to book it. “A lot of owners think that if they have a great, beautiful space then it will just draw customers to it and they don’t have to do anything,” Liu says. “Unfortunately that’s not the case.” Below, Marc shares ways that owners and managers can craft excellent private event space marketing that keeps them top of mind for private event planners.

Use Your Existing Channels

You don’t need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to reaching people who are planning on booking a private event. “The way that we approach marketing is that we tell our customers to use the existing channels that they already have,” says Liu. “Use your social media pages, your website, and your email list. You can use all of these things to let your followers know what you offer for private events.”

Create Eye-Catching Content

One of the biggest mistakes that Liu sees from restaurant owners is that they’ll post a picture of their beautiful private event space while it’s empty. “You want to make it as easy as possible for people to see themselves in that space,” he says. “Even if the space is beautiful, you want to post a picture that has people in it, enjoying themselves with food and drinks.” It can be a picture from a previous event or you can even stage a photograph, so people get an idea of what their private event will look like in the space. The goal is to make a guest go, ‘Oh, this space would be perfect for my event.’ “Always make the content as specific to your audience as possible,” Liu says.

Convey Why You’re Special

Saying that you have a certain number of chairs or square footage is good, but conveying what really makes your restaurant special is what’s going to make you stand out. “Put yourself in the position of a party planner and think about what it is that your restaurant offers that will make an event special,” Liu says. That could be a special dish, music, or anything that makes your restaurant stand out from other private event spaces. “Craft a message around that and use wording like you’re talking directly to that person about why they want to have their event with you.” [Read more…]

Since the launch of Snapchat, every social platform is scrambling to come up with its own tool that allows users to broadcast their lives in real time. Instagram Stories is one of the more successful of those attempts — a user-friendly extension of the popular photo app that essentially does the same thing as Snapchat (even incorporating the image and text overlay functions), just on the Instagram platform. As Instagram is still one of the most influential marketing tools for food businesses, if you’re not already using the Stories tool — it’s time to learn.

How does it work?

Instagram Stories are incredibly user-friendly. Just tap on the “+” sign on the top left part of your Instagram feed, and you’re ready to snap a photo or record video, just as you would on Instagram. You can also pull a video or a photo off of your phone. There are options for captioning your image, as well as adding stickers, or tagging others. You can shoot multiple scenes to string your story together, just as you would in Snapchat. After 24 hours, your story will disappear.[Read more…]

It is almost a given that no matter what type of restaurant you are, on Mother’s Day, you can prepare to be slammed. The holiday has long beat out both New Year’s Eve and Valentine’s Day as the busiest day of the year for restaurants, so if you don’t already have a game plan, it’s time to get one together. Take a look at our top 10 marketing tips for getting the most out of mom’s day.

1. If you don’t offer brunch, add it on for Mother’s Day. A vast majority of the reservation-seekers on Mother’s Day will be looking to have brunch. If you don’t do brunch, now is a great time to advertise Mother’s Day as an exclusive, one-time-only brunch menu to lock down regulars and entice newcomers. Release the menu in advance on your website and Instagram to build up anticipation among potential guests.

2. Make sure you can accommodate kids. With Mother’s Day comes the almost-guaranteed possibility that kids will be plentiful at each table. Stock up on booster seats if you don’t already have them, and be sure to come up with a few kid-friendly combos so you’re not having to customize a meal last-minute for picky children.

3. Flowers are a must — but don’t wait to order them. One of the reasons that people love Mother’s Day is that in many cities, it’s one of the first harbingers of summer and warmer weather. Give your dining room a breezy, summery vibe with lots of flowers, and order extras to give to mothers as they walk through the door. Don’t forget: florists will be in high demand on Mother’s Day, so get your order in well in advance. [Read more…]